


Petrichor

by jyuubi



Category: Naruto
Genre: 19 year olds, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - College/University, Communication Failure, Fluff and Crack, Lighthearted, M/M, Mutual Pining, One Shot, Pining, Plotless, Surfer Naruto, rivalry as their love language, theyre bad at talking to each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:33:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28089318
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jyuubi/pseuds/jyuubi
Summary: If there was something Naruto expected at the moment, it was Sasuke sighing excessively loud, maybe even pulling on his ear to shut him up, or another extensive, verbal list of meaningless insults that Naruto would find more endearing than he would find offensive; going as far as to say he’d consider it amusing.Those were the top three highly possible outcomes of course, but what he’d definitely not expected, was Sasuke pulling them into the type of corny situation he accused of Naruto liking too much, the type of delusional where you’d expect life to be movie magic; kissing him lightly on the lips as means of silencing someone— silencing Naruto— subjecting them to the same corny-movie-magic situation, gentle hands gripping the sides of his face with the warmth that Naruto didn’t feel frequently enough for him to desire until now.Alternatively: how Naruto's relationship with Sasuke changed inevitably with each passing season. A lighthearted list of events, ranging from little moments of intimacy to flat-out bullshittery, all from late high-school to the early years of college.
Relationships: Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto
Comments: 4
Kudos: 73





	Petrichor

**Author's Note:**

> edit: i removed the smut. lol, didnt feel like it fit in. 1k words gone
> 
> anyway, sorry for the mess. this thing is literal word vomit. i dont know what happened lmaoo

**_Nineteen. Early June._ **

“Great choice of day, Naruto. Great choice. I can’t believe I agreed to you and your idiotic friends.” 

“Look, it isn’t that bad, okay?” Naruto holds out his hand as though the flashing little splashes of water were not enough proof that the rain had been, in fact, pouring. “We can still surf. The waves are right there— and the sun’s still kinda out! And we’ll get wet anyway, right?” 

Sasuke scoffs, looking pointedly at Naruto. “I don’t even know how to surf," he lifts a hand to shush as the blond perked up, “And I don’t care to learn.” 

Naruto cocks his head to the side, rubbing the back of his head to shake off whatever water had reached him. That, and the little feeling of embarrassment he couldn’t shoo away by fiddling his hands on the side. The _one_ time he had managed to drag Sasuke's ass to the beach, an utter failure— just because Mother Nature decided it was time to rain.

“Well, I was going to teach you?” The blond mutters softly, as though Sasuke didn't just talk about not giving a shit. “I brought two boards.” 

“Naruto,” Sasuke sighs, leaning back on the hammock as he looks up at Naruto. There’s this blank, annoyedly impatient look on his face, a dark eyebrow cocked upwards as a mild frown pulls his features down, but Naruto was more surprised that Sasuke had bothered to let himself go as far as to relax on the thing, even after the rain had hit at their supposedly sunny good day. They were separated from the others, Sakura and the rest finding spots on the tamer sides of the beach, where there seemed to be softer waves. It didn’t seem like they were still swimming though, as far as Naruto could see; likely having to scramble for shelter to protect their belongings. 

…It was one of those happening far too often moments with Sasuke, just serenity and a heavily expectant atmosphere dragging them towards each other; the times where he felt like he was being dragged underwater, forced to see things with the fear of not being able to see them again. 

“Yes?” Naruto asks, because there isn’t much to pick off from Sasuke’s bored face. He leans against one of the support beams, letting his feet get cleaned off the sand as he holds it up outside the little hut, rain washing it away. 

“Does wearing a hoodie to a beach tell you anything about what I feel? What does me declining every beach invite this past year have to tell you?” 

“Oh,” Naruto chuckles, and theres an idiotic grin on his face as he faces Sasuke, running his eyes over the man’s clothes. Sasuke wore long-sleeves everywhere, saying he didn’t like how the sun prickled his skin; the serious vampire he was, and Naruto was far too used to it to infer from it anymore— there was no more sun too. “Well, you're here now. I plan to take advantage of it." 

“You dragged me here.”

“Sas’. You could’ve just stayed with Sakura. You willingly followed me.” 

Sasuke rolls his eyes, rocking the hammock with a little sway of his feet that hangs off the edge, tucking them back in when he finds a speed he likes. Naruto places a hand on it as it slows immediately, rocking it with his own strength, smirking slightly at the little sign of release and relaxation of Sasuke’s shoulders. “You think I could take any more of her disgustingly lame flirting with Ino? If none of us were there they’d strip and start fucking on the spot. Never mind the sand.” 

“Sure… I didn’t need that image.” Naruto rolls his eyes, a little grimace surfacing. “So did you want to go, or no?”

Sasuke sighs, eyebrows dropping in calm shock (or so Naruto thinks, Sasuke’s two moods were bitch and not-bitch.) “I didn’t know you could be so perceptive.” 

Naruto snorts out a laugh, grown tired of holding his leg out and sits down on the stiff wooden benches of the hut, crossing his legs as he continues to lean against the same pole to keep eye contact with Sasuke despite the difficulty of it. The amused look on his face stays, his hand lightly rocking as much as he could against Sasuke’s weight. “You learn some things when you spend most of your time with an edgy, brooding bastard.” 

“More like my brain cells deteriorate whenever I spend time with you,” Sasuke snorts, shifting against the hammock, hand fiddling, hidden in his hoodie pockets. 

Naruto gives a small chuckle, shrugging against the harsh wood pressing against his arm. 

This was when silence would hit the two of them, happening more and more recently, and it was honestly more of Naruto being overly sensitive and conscious of the times he spent with Sasuke, but… after a little realization after seeing the fascinating show Sasuke act in; unlike the shitty high school play that had their lights flickering brokenly in the middle, microphones cutting off lamely in all the important moments. 

Naruto had found it the most charming Sasuke had ever been, even when he was… well, _being fake._ That short hour made Naruto think more of what he felt towards his friend, overthinking and wishing the little quirks Sasuke showed him were honest and genuine. From then, it was easy to realize how much he just… _wanted_ from the man. Wanted more than knowing every little thing Sasuke did, more than his study habits and dislikes— he wanted to know the deepest, darkest desires Sasuke couldn't even accept himself. 

Still, Naruto didn’t think too much about it. His feelings fell up and down and Naruto never really had time to think about it seriously; limited to fleeting thoughts of admiration and absolute, uh, _cuteness,_ Naruto would spot once and never again; until he crossed a line that would make Sasuke huff and walk away because he simply didn't know what to reply. 

Even now, Sasuke kept to himself, seemingly unaware of Naruto’s innocently heavy stare on him. Naruto figured he did it enough that it no longer was awkward to Sasuke as it initially was. It was cold, he was shirtless and oddly vulnerable, and being this far away from his best friend-crush-something in no way warm. “So, can we go surfing? You can just remove your hoodie.” 

“You can still go surf on your own,” Sasuke shrugs, hugging himself along with an attempt to sink into the thin hammock. 

“And leave you here? C’mon.”

Sasuke blinks an eye open, “And when has that stopped you?” 

“Oh, don’t say that,” Naruto snorts, giving one harsh tug on the hammock, smiling at the way Sasuke arches a brow before turning away, not really hiding himself in any way, pale legs and face still in show. “I came back to pick you up, Sas’, you nerdy bastard. Studying when during a break.” Naruto taps him on the knee, other hand already reaching out as a head starts to grab his surfboard; stopping short when he feels a shiver thrum through him at the touch of his palm against Sasuke’s knee— “Are you cold?” 

“No. You’re a walking heater, remember?” Sasuke says, his eyes remain closed, but he wraps his arms around his knees and knots his fingers together, the motion shrugging Naruto’s palm off, and the blond realizes that maybe he did care that people would easily sweat with his touch, especially with Sasuke, but his first thought was wanting to keep him warm. But yeah, okay, not now. 

“Oh, yeah. You keep saying that.” Naruto grabs either side of his surfboard, the thing bright orange and show off-y enough that he knew not even Sasuke would be able to resist looking only to insult it, and hopefully he’ll be able to milk some compliments once he’s on the waves. 

Orange and black, the few colors that would look good with his blond hair and blue eyes— what could a simple man do? This was also the first time he had ever successfully brought Sasuke to the beach, the man always avoidant, saying he preferred going to parties when all Naruto remembers when remotely ‘partying' with Sasuke was him just sitting by the drinks and waiting for some dude that wasn’t Naruto to start a one-sided conversation with him. It ultimately ended with Sasuke ignoring them, or shooting girls down with a simple “ _I’m gay.”_

Naruto had followed Sasuke with his eyes one night, momentarily distracted when he tipped his head back with a laugh, eyes widening when he saw Sasuke, who surprisingly let a stranger wrap an arm around his waist, the two of them rushing out those doors with a light laugh— slightly sarcastic sounding, but undoubtedly spilling from Sasuke’s lips— that Naruto barely heard, unable to relish but completely shocked at how he had never heard the noise that should’ve been him that brought it out. It was also one of those little times he collected, stored in a little notepad in the back of his head, the monumental and short show of comfort and sometimes cute Naruto wanted to hear again, wanted from Sasuke again. 

“Have fun,” he hears Sasuke mutter behind him, just as the cold rain plops on Naruto’s skin. Naruto gives a grin over his shoulder, sure that Sasuke had to be looking up at him, the sound of his voice not muffled by the hoodie he was tucked into only a second go, and Naruto mouths a little ‘yeah’ before he tucks the board under his armpit, jogging towards the moving waters. 

-

Maybe it was how the water was against his fingertips, loose and unrelenting when he stroked against the surface, always finding himself mesmerized with how it moved between his fingers— Naruto loved the ocean. He loved surfing, the breeze and the water soothing on his skin; against the usual heat of the sun. 

Now, however, there was barely any sun, and it was mostly just cold. Cold, but his heater self was already pumping with adrenaline, his arms propelling him deeper in the water and closer to the oncoming wave. Chest pressed heavily against his board, the blond’s arm propels himself forward faster, and when the water is right under the tip of his board, Naruto pushes himself up; the first milliseconds are just him wobbling to find balance, feet shifting slightly in a better stance as he bends his knees, torso bent lower to stay closer to the board, arms flailing carefully front and back to center the balance the water tries to throw him off of. 

Eventually, he’s confident, twisting the board with the strength of his feet, arms held out and eyes itching to see whether or not Sasuke was looking. The breeze is tough and refreshing against his skin. The water is a grayish blue, its highlighting whites constantly changing and just… absolutely beautiful. 

It’s exhilarating. 

Naruto wishes Sasuke could see just how he good he felt, wishing he could share this experience to not just Kiba and the ‘bros’ Sasuke claimed were dumb. 

Turning his head to take a little peek, for the barest of seconds that felt like time had slowed down, Sasuke was in fact looking at him— chin on his knees, eyes widening before they return to their earlier bored, half shut lids as Naruto could see from his peripheral— turning away as quickly as he looked, and Naruto hopes the little sparkle of interest in Sasuke’s surprise wasn’t just an image the water stuck on his lashes changed for him to see. 

There’s no thinking about it— not when the wave was still going strong, tunneling on him and forcing him to choose between his careless ogling or the exhilaration he craved for. 

—

“You’re sick.” 

“I’m not.” Naruto frowns, wincing when the muscle in his face thrums in pain. Sasuke doesn’t miss it, rolling his eyes as he slaps the wet towel at Naruto’s face. The coolness of the cloth makes up for the heavy swing, and Naruto lands a hand on Sasuke’s thigh in retaliation, weakly squeezing it before it’s easily slapped away. Arm awkwardly flopping on his side, Naruto can’t gather enough strength to move the towel; the thing slowly trapping warmth than cooling him. He exhales an exhausted _thanks._

Naruto, on the verge of sleeping again, feels cold fingers peel the towel off his face, folding them on his forehead. If he were any less sick, he would tease Sasuke for it, but all he could manage was a little grin and a twitch of his eyelid. A wordless _hehe Sasuke’s taking care of me,_ his eyes are shut. 

“Idiot.” 

—

Still incredibly sore, Naruto somehow manages to feel incredibly energized, pushing himself off the bed, joints snapping and clicking as he stretches. It’s a pain to walk his way out of his room, but the pain numbs and Naruto’s pleasantly surprised when he sees a familiar head of dark hair. 

“You’re still here.” 

“I’m leaving now.” Sasuke doesn’t miss a beat, pushing to his feet and grabbing for the coat draped over the arm of Naruto’s sofa. The orange scarf slips to the floor, but Sasuke doesn’t pick it up, tucking his phone into his pocket, seemingly more focused with the action than looking at Naruto. “I bought some akayu ramen, just heat it up if it's cold. It probably is. Bye.” 

“No, let’s eat together.” Naruto blocks Sasuke’s path to the door, arms held out much to his muscles’ protests, heavy. 

“I have someplace to be.” 

“The Sasuke I know would've left long ago if that were the case. Come on now.” Naruto looks at him with the most pleading look he could muster, but it dissipates when his head suddenly pulses. “I also, y’know, need you to keep taking care of me.” 

Sasuke stares at him, contemplating, but not long enough for Naruto to not know that he was faking even thinking about it. “Okay.” 

“Thanks, and sorry. I don’t get sick, you know that. The rain must’ve fucked me up.” 

Naruto walks to his kitchen, immediately spotting the plastic bag he knew that carried his food. Sasuke follows after him, preparing himself a cup of tea with hot water from the thermostat Naruto didn’t know he had. The blond unties the plastic knot, and the warm, delicious aroma hits him gently. Taking the bowl out, he brings it to his living room, plopping across Sasuke, hastily ripping the paper wrapping off his chopsticks and digging in, never mind Sasuke not even really having anything to eat. 

“You want some?” Naruto asks, leaning back after taking a few barely fulfilling gulps of noodle and soup. 

Sasuke looks at him with a hint of disgust, muttering a clearly disgusted _no_ before sipping his tea. Naruto only shrugs. They begin to hear a soft platter against the windows, but Naruto can’t seem to look away from his food. 

It was probably raining outside. 

**_Seventeen. Late June._ **

It rained again. 

Nothing really stopped Naruto from holding a hand out just to feel it— the small droplets— he liked the cold; it felt nice against his skin. It was a type of smooth, quickly withering type of cold, but when it dropped again and again it nearly felt like he was drowning in it. 

It felt good. 

"You're going to get sick." 

Naruto snorts, nevertheless retracting his hand back into his pockets. "I'm not." 

"Whatever you say." Sasuke opens his umbrella, and Naruto turns to him properly, down to the hands that smoothly worked out and spread the thing. He holds it to the side, pushing the flaps open before he raises it above his head. 

"I've never gotten sick before," Naruto mutters, nudging Sasuke to the side and brushing their arms together, forcing himself under the protection. They start walking, feet as clumsily— Naruto's feet— sync as possible with their closeness. “Let a man enjoy the weather he's been enjoying all his life. But I can see your concern— with that witch-duck hair you got going on, little demon hair horns, there might be some type of curse going on. I might get cursed too, oh God. I just want to enjoy this good weather.” 

“I can see how a dog like you would enjoy this wet weather," Sasuke sighs, ignoring the comment on curses and how Naruto throws a half-hearted glare at him, scooting closer, pushing Naruto out the tiniest bit, the blond's shoulder probably already hanging out for the rain to wet, but he makes no proper move to shove him out. "I hate the rain." 

"I can tell, " Naruto mutters something about the dog comment, already contemplating on wrapping an arm around Sasuke's shoulder so neither of them would get wet. He ultimately decides not to— that type of touch with Sasuke seemed like it would mean more than he'd like. For now. The water starts to seep into his clothes. "Do you like snow?" 

"No." 

"Too cold, huh?" Naruto tilts his head forward, watching closely as he could, knowing Sasuke's hair covered him from seeing Naruto's face. Or so he hopes. He could still remember seeing clearly enough when his bangs reached a little lower than his eyes. Sasuke's hair covered the sides of his face, a thick curtain it seemed no one would be able to look into or look out of. 

“Yeah, it’s fucking annoying. Can’t breathe half the time. ” Sasuke exhales, the tiny shift in his movement brushing the hair to fully cover the side of his face. Naruto, finding nothing much to look at, straightens again, looking ahead, unknowingly even more tilted against Sasuke as to avoid the rain. The looking away barely lasts a few seconds, though, especially with Naruto being a person naturally inclined to find validation by reading someone’s expressions; and it takes more effort when it comes to Sasuke, especially with how the boy’s expressions weren’t entirely obvious. 

"I like the snow, winter. You can make these little serene snow-falling clips, and recording the process of setting up a Christmas tree can get really pretty, but of course there are other things I want to make, and I get better every year, y’know? We should make it together sometime.” 

“…You like film? Somehow doesn’t seem like to suit someone like you,” Sasuke arches a brow, their eyes meeting for a second. “You seem more of the on-the-go type, the quantity over quality guy. Doesn’t film take long periods of time?” 

“It doesn’t take that long— you seem more of the on-the-go type than me! And my films are of amazing quality, asshole,” he glares. “And I just picked it up two years ago, so I’m still learning.” 

“You haven’t shown me any of your films yet, if you’re so confident.” 

Naruto feels his face warm, and he slowly rubs the back of his head with a little chortle. “They’re very… cheesy, most of them, about family. And I have shown you some of them! Just some photos and clips I’ve shown everyone… I guess.” 

Sasuke snorts, and even when Sasuke sounds barely cocky, it triggers Naruto’s mental defenses. Thankfully, Sasuke probably senses Naruto’s slight tenses, his next words charged with rare genuinity and softness, “…Nothing is ever as bad as they seem, idiot. Show them to me sometime.” 

Naruto’s insecurities momentarily pushed to the back— dare he say lessened; he grins, elbowing Sasuke as a little thanks for their little moment of emotional understanding. 

“Yeah, I’ll show them soon, when you go to my house,” Naruto wraps his palm around Sasuke's own, the one gripping the umbrella, a wordless way of asking him to hand the thing. Sasuke slips away from under his hand, willingly handing it. The momentary cool of Sasuke's knuckles is lost in seconds.

“Who says I’d be going to your house— and Jesus fuck, your hand is an oven,” Sasuke shakes his hand, and Naruto can see the hairs of his arm stand, before Sasuke drops his arm and brushes it against Naruto’s side. “No, the entirety of you is an oven. A walking heater, actually, so maybe you’d be useful in the winter.” 

“Yeah, good for me, at least I don’t overheat in the summer,” Naruto blinks, ignoring how Sasuke turns to him just to scowl, and he pokes Sasuke’s arm. The return of eye-contact is nice. Naruto smiles, “And useful, huh? So you’d like it if we—”

“No. Hell no. No, I don’t want to participate in your—” 

“Winter is near— come on, I’m a walking heater, right? I could keep you—”

“Naruto, shut up, winter is _not_ near, shut up before I throw you out of this umbrella.” 

“It’s our first winter together, why wouldn’t we cuddle— and _I’m_ holding the umbrella. You can’t shove me out of it. I love the rain, too, what good is it to you than me?”

Sasuke’s lean against Naruto gets a little heavier. “If you love the rain so much, just—”

“No, no, okay, I get it. No cuddles. But let’s hang out.”

“We… We only met three months ago. I’m not getting all cuddly with someone I met just— you’re fucking weird, you cuddle with your friends?” 

“You… we’re _friends!_ That’s the cheesiest thing you’ve ever said. Sasuke, what incredible character development—”

“Ugh… please shut up, shut up, Jesus Christ. I seriously am going to put a fucking muzzle—” 

“We’re going to hang out, definitely,” Naruto tugs on Sasuke’s sleeve, arm reaching across his body awkwardly, “I’m going to drag your ass out of your house if you don’t willingly go yourself.” 

“My dad wouldn’t like that. He doesn’t like idiots like you.” 

“Your dad fucking loves me— your whole fucking family loves me, they’d listen to me more than they’d listen to you, come on.” 

There’s a hint of disbelief in Sasuke’s voice, all topped off with a bored look on his face. “You’ve only met them once. Briefly. No words exchanged. What makes you think they’ll like you after that lame first impression?” 

“Well, when I do go to your house, then they’ll fall in love with me. I promise.” 

“Wouldn’t be the first,” Sasuke mutters, the words spilling out of his mouth like it was unintentional. It probably was; with the way his eyes widened 

Naruto sputters, the implications of that Sasuke even dared to say too outlandish for him to believe. “What?” 

“Nothing.” 

“Hey— who? _Who?”_

“I was joking.” Sasuke’s tone was flat, no hidden meaning in his voice, and Naruto has his precious bits of dignity to protect by not pushing the topic any further. A teen like him was in the peek of love-sickness and crushes. 

“You got me hoping a little there, Sas’, don’t get all lover-boy with me.” 

Sasuke turns away with an amused sigh. “Who would like an idiot like you?” 

— 

"Smells good." 

"Smells like wet dirt." 

"It's a good smell." 

"Fucking dog." 

Naruto pouts, squeezing the palm that somehow never slipped from his grip. Not when the wind had blasted Sasuke's umbrella, Naruto immediately reacted by grabbing Sasuke's hand and dragging him towards whatever shelter was nearby. "Don't be mean." 

"The truth... It hurts." The pout is lost within seconds, replaced with a look of amusement Sasuke only wanted to slap off his face. "What?" 

"That's such a lame way of saying it. You're such a nerd." 

Sasuke snatches his palm away, and Naruto makes no move to retrieve it. "I can't believe I let you talk to me." 

"A cocky nerd. Cocky nerd bastard— yet you can't resist my charm." 

"And you call me cocky. It's definitely a wonder how I even manage to talk to you after all these years." 

“Yeah, yeah. If I didn’t know you hated the rain this much I would’ve made us just walk— it’s less cold when you’re constantly in the rain, y’know?” Naruto cocks his head to the side, watching Sasuke squeeze his clothes dry. “In the end we still squeeze our clothes too,” He fists his shirt with one hand, letting the other to be held out to feel the droplets spill on his palm. It’s not as cold to him as it is to Sasuke, and he looks at Sasuke with a sheepish look on his face.

Maybe part of this was his fault. 

**_Eighteen. May._ **

“Rainy season soon.” There's a smile on Naruto’s face, one that contrasts Sasuke’s extremely sour one; a sight Sakura felt amusing enough to point out.

“Looking so dumb, Naruto.” 

The blond turns away from Sasuke, the smile never dropping from his face. “It’s the best season. Can’t blame me.” 

“I’d argue that you like all seasons.” 

“Well, yes, but rain is nice. There’s something about it— it also means that winter break is soon. Winter break means freedom,” He turns to Sasuke, “and Sasuke, y’know?” 

“What the fuck does that even mean?” Sasuke looks up at him, unimpressed but definitely interested enough to look away from his food. 

“It’s the only season you’re willing to go out, even when it's the season you say hate the most.” 

“Shut up.”

Naruto points thumbs in Sasuke's direction, grinning as he faces Sakura. “Whenever he doesn’t know what to say, he does this thing where he’s— ow! Hey, asshole, sorry you’re so easy to read—”

“Naruto, I really think you should just shut up.” 

“Sakura,” Naruto says in the same teasing tone, “I don’t want to. Whenever I talk, someone learns something new— like right now, about Sasuke, whenever he doesn’t know wha—”

“Naruto, you fucking—”

**_Eighteen. November._ **

“So,” Naruto shuts the door, trading a few steps before he slumps on Sasuke’s bed, Sasuke sitting on the beanbag near the large full wall window in his room. “I heard you got into crocheting. Make me something.”

Frames blocking a little of his sight, Sasuke pushes his glasses up higher, still focused on the thread and needle between his fingertips. Sasuke sighs, no longer bothered with how Naruto showed up to his house unwanted and spontaneously like garden weeds.“Pay me.” 

“O-kay, sure. How much?” 

“I was kidding,” Sasuke says, a hint of surprise on his tone. 

“Kidding as in you’re not selling or kidding as in I don’t have to pay you?” 

“I haven’t even finished anything yet,” Sasuke holds his progress to eye-level, letting Naruto look at it too. “There’s a hole, and I should’ve picked a better color.” 

“It’s a nice color.” 

“No, it’s not.” 

“It’s orange. Orange is a nice color.”

“It’s not.” 

Naruto squints at him, palm pushing into his face as he lays on his side. “Why’d you choose it then?” 

“The only color my mom had left. Even though she doesn’t like orange enough to use it.” 

“She probably thinks it's too good to use,” Naruto yawns, rolling over on Sasuke’s bed like it was his own. “Are you gonna use that, whatever you’re making?” 

“No.” 

“Oh, so can I have it?” 

“You love looking like shit, don’t you?” 

“I look incredibly hot in orange, what are you on about?” Naruto rolls his eyes, sinking into one of Sasuke’s pillows. He doesn’t wait for whatever Sasuke has to say, too tired and too delirious to find the fight in him. “M’ gonna sleep. It’s somehow really warm in this house.” 

"Somehow? Are you insulting the capabilities of my home? It's best you shut up before something here decides to eat you alive." 

Naruto snorts out a laugh, always a little baffled at Sasuke's lame but effortful attempts in humor. "Yes. With how you're constantly indoors. I wonder what it's truly doing to you. Or _with_ you. You're pretty damn weird, Sas'." Naruto swats at the air blindly, hoping it looked like him trying to imitate a witch spewing some magical incantation— what he still believed Sasuke was. "Maybe it's what's making me sleepy. With magic. That's why your bed always smells good, too." 

"I just wash my sheets regularly. I don't like my bed smelling like soapy cheetos." Naruto squints as Sasuke smirks, knowing Naruto didn't like talking about the one unfortunate time he dropped the cheesy junk on his bed. The smell stayed until the next time he had used the same bedcover again, and Sasuke didn't miss it. It was gross as fuck, smelling like that, and for the first time Naruto felt a little ridiculous for something he couldn't help. His embarrassment faded not long after, but Sasuke would bring it up from time to time.

Other than that, even a little heavy-eyed, Naruto has a fleeting thought of Sasuke looking pretty good under the snowy white light. The boy always looked hot, don't get him wrong, but he'd been paying extra attention recently; not ridding of the now instinct after having to intently observe Sasuke's study habits because the boy couldn't seem to explain to Naruto what exactly he did that made studying easy. 

"God knows if there are cockroaches seeking refuge under your pillow." 

"Look, that was long ago. There are no cockroaches under my pillow. If there were… well, we'd be friends." 

"You are fucking disgusting, get off my bed." 

Naruto only hums, shutting his eyes and rubbing his face into the pillow. He could practically feel Sasuke's disgust, but no intent to actually get him off; Sasuke knew it was a bluff— the blond was scared of anything with more than four legs, insects and all. "No," Naruto mumbles, eyes refusing to open after having them shut properly. 

There's a light rustle, Sasuke shifting on the beanbag. Naruto assumes he's back on crocheting whatever weird thing he was making. 

**_Eighteen. May._ **

"I got into surfing."

"Amazing, it was about time you got a hobby that wasn't bothering me."

"No, Sas', that's instinct. Not a hobby. My old hobby was evaluating and ranking each dorito chip every once in a while. And maybe basketball, but that never really captured your attention, did it?" 

"It didn't. I don't give a shit about basketball. Football is way more interesting than tossing a ball around and licking your teams' armpits." 

Naruto frowns, levelling a glare at Sasuke. "We lick no armpits." 

"Surprising, with how all your arms are constantly in the air." 

"Asshole, that's the sport. I don't kick around a ball and call it a day." 

"Don't disrespect football like that." 

"It's as dumb as it is— at least people don't have to constantly ask if basketball was… handball, or something." 

"Please, shut up, don't bring those idiots into this. Football is football. No one actually gives a shit about… the other football." 

"You're going to offend a lot of people, Sas’." Naruto chuckles. “Anyway, you need to see me surf sometime. I probably look cooler than I think.”

"Just send me a video."

“Oh, yeah. I've been so busy that I haven't been able to talk to you recently,” Naruto says, knowing Sasuke usually didn’t initiate their conversations. Not like they’d spent too long without talking to each other, though; just a day or two where the two of them were dead silent. Even now, Naruto had shown up, uninvited, and Sasuke still had his glasses on, notes and textbook laid open in front of him. “I’m inviting you right now for a trip to the beach, though. While it's summer— your favorite season." 

Sasuke waves his hand, as though already dismissing the offer. ”I'm busy too, Naruto. Just send me a video when you do surf.”

"I have surfed! But it's way cooler in real life, I promise you. Come on. While it’s summer.” 

“The season doesn’t matter. I don’t like the beach, so I’m not going,” Sasuke sighs, doing his best to ignore Naruto; the idiot looking up at him as he awkwardly laid his head on Sasuke’s desk, torso twisted. “Naruto, get off.” 

“No, come on, please? Let’s go.” 

“No.”

**_Nineteen. February._ **

“Fuck, it’s cold,” Sakura tries to breathe, but it only hurts to inhale the icy air. 

“Stick by me, Sakura.” 

“I am glued to your side, Naruto. It’s just that cold.” 

Naruto sniffs. “Well, it’s okay to me.” 

“All that fat and muscle isn’t enough to keep you warm, idiot. Just say you’re cold,” Sakura chuckles, quickly followed by a cough. 

“But I’m really okay,” Naruto shrugs, holding Sakura closer to him.

“I’ll never understand how to manage to feel that way and not get sick. How good is your immune system? How thick is your skin? You refute the science of human anatomy.” 

“After all these years, at least you should be used to it.” 

“Whatever, whatever, we’re here,” Sakura dismisses, her hand reaching into her pockets. It comes out a moment later with two tickets in hand. With a few more steps to the theater doors, they’re faced with a student their age asking for tickets, and Sakura hands it swiftly. “Can’t wait to see Sasuke.” 

“Yep, yep. I bet he’d look hilarious. He never really struck me as the actor type, y’know? He doesn’t give enough of a shit to bother to act not-a-bitch. A straightforward, bastard, he is— but I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and say that he’s practically good at everything, so another part of me wouldn’t be surprised he’d be good at acting— but he told me about how their rehearsals weren’t ‘that bad,’ and it makes me think that he might actually like it. Apparently his role in this play is some type of mystery-prince. Seems like exactly what he is— would he even need to act—”

“Yes, Naruto. Thank you for the information,” Sakura rolls her eyes, dragging Naruto towards their seats in the back, weaving them around other guests. “…You and your best-friend shit. Jesus, you need to know when to shut up when it comes to him.” 

“I feel like I know more about him than I know about anything else. It’s easy to talk about something when you know about it well,” Naruto says as he takes a seat beside Sakura, shrugging off his jacket and laying across his lap. “Besides Dorito flavors, I think. I know a lot about that too.” 

“Quirky, Naruto. Very quirky.” 

“Well. Yeah, me, I guess. How are you and Ino? She’s going to be in the play, right?” Even with the dim lights in the theatre, Naruto can see the light blush spreading across his friend’s cheeks. He grins, poking her on her side. “Oho, I see.” 

“No, you don’t, Naruto. Shut up.” 

—

Naruto would have never believed it if you told him that Sasuke was capable of being that expressive. 

That expressive, he was, never mind that he was acting. 

There was this sparkle, as cheesy as it was, that Naruto seemed to see. That little twinge of interest and genuinity Sasuke only had when he was having fun. And when he opened his mouth, a song spilling sweetly from his lips— so unlike the soft humming Naruto would sometimes catch him guilty of— Naruto knew there was more to the excited fluttering in his stomach than the idea of friendship. 

— 

“Sasuke!” 

“Why are you— what is that face.” 

Naruto grins, face looking like it would split in half. Despite the sour look on Sasuke’s face, Naruto knew the man had enjoyed himself; dark hair sticking to his face, that shine of excitement still over him. 

“You did great. Amazing,” Naruto reaches for Sasuke’s shoulders, shaking him, grip only tightening when Sasuke puts a palm on his chest to try and push him away. “You looked awesome— you did awesome— holy shit, I can’t even be jealous right now. That was so fucking good!” 

“Ah…” The already present blush on Sasuke’s cheeks brighten, the pushing on Naruto’s chest faltering for a moment before it’s back to its original strength. Naruto doesn’t budge. “Thanks. Now leave. You aren’t supposed to be here.”

“Okay, okay. But we need to meet once you’re done, alright? Don’t you dare run away,” Naruto slowly releases his grip, Sasuke’s hand falling along with his. 

“I’ll see.” 

—

“Sas’, you look like you’re dying.” 

Sasuke turns to Naruto, heated glare and all, but Naruto can’t help but think of how sort of adorable Sasuke looked with all that fluff covering him. 

“Shut up, human heater,” Sasuke scowls, not looking at all threatening— not with his reddened nose and puffed cheeks, he’s not. Naruto does his best to suppress a grin, the corners of his lips twitching upwards, Sasuke’s own doing the opposite. “The day you get sick will be the same day I’ll be looking down at you with a smile on my face.” 

Naruto pulls at Sasuke’s earlobe, fingers tickling the smooth skin behind his ear, feeling it warm under his touch; beaming, Naruto gushes lightly, “That still means you’ll be by my side when I get sick, right?” 

**_Nineteen. Early June._ **

“That was the worst experience ever. I was sick for a week! A week, Sas’! Imagine how much work out time I’ve lost!” 

“…Why are you calling me?” 

“Cos’ you aren’t replying to my texts.” 

“It’s… it’s four in the morning. I’m hanging up, bye—”

“—No! Wait, okay, look. Having rested for that long, I’ve got a lot of energy stored, okay? Plus getting that much good sleep gave me more time to stay awake, and I—”

“Naruto. What do you want?” 

“…Just calling to say thanks. I didn’t think you’d take care of me.” 

“…Is that it?” 

“Yeah, sorry for calling you so late. You should probably get back to sleep, we can talk tomorrow— I mean, we can talk later—”

“Goodnight, Naruto.” 

“Goodn—”

**_Nineteen. March._ **

“Cherry blossoms, Sas’, look at em.’ Super pink. Your favorite color.” 

“I don’t like pink,” Sasuke sighs, 

“I bet you’d look good in it, though.” 

Sasuke slaps the back of the blond’s head, nearly gagging at the thought of him wearing something pink. Let alone a full body light-pink— light-pink blouse, pants… his _shoes—_ oh dear God. Sasuke would rather die before wearing anything like that. 

Naruto laughs, rubbing where Sasuke hit him, likely thinking what Sasuke was thinking of as well. “Or not. Pink isn’t your vibe, is it? Maybe it’s more of mine.”

Glancing at the cherry blossoms around them, the light pinks, blotches of fuchsia and white hanging above their heads, assaulting his eyes with a nearly unpleasant brightness; but then again, if he were to try to be nicer, it wouldn’t be too different from him spending most his free time with Naruto— Naruto who would look good in full pink. 

“…You love looking like shit, don’t you?” 

**_Nineteen. May._ **

Sasuke had agreed on going to a picnic. _A picnic._

And okay, the man looked a little bored, just sitting there while Naruto lay on his side in front of him, but Naruto was ecstatic— this was the little time they could spend time with each other, after all— Naruto was getting a little angsty with how little he would see Sasuke nowadays. 

The food Naruto brought with him were all just… simple, probably plain tasting store-bought sandwiches, but neither of them were focused on the food, just the environment, the scenery, and Naruto was happy with it. 

He certainly didn’t know he’d be _this_ giddy, but he was, and he didn’t fail to show it on his face, a stark contrast with Sasuke’s sour glare on him. But the glare never seemed to work anymore, Naruto always finding another factor that made him think Sasuke was cute. 

This time, it was how the pink fell all around them, a faint glow on Sasuke’s frame, and maybe the light glint in his eye that failed to reflect the meaning of what a glare should’ve meant. 

“You look cute,” Naruto says, a smile still on his face, cheek squished against his palm as he looked up at Sasuke. 

“I dare you to say that again. I dare you. The choice is yours if you still want your head on your shoulders,” Sasuke’s eyes darken, looming over Naruto, hands threateningly close to Naruto’s throat. 

Still, unlike the other times Sasuke would threaten him like this, instead of faltering, his grin widens, crying out when he Sasuke does reach out for him, pinching his nose and pulling on his ear— and despite that, maybe Naruto should compliment him on other things too, if the barely-there blush even on Sasuke’s pale skin was any more ethereal. 

**_Nineteen. April._ **

“Gross, you kept that orange scarf?” Sasuke grimaces, unwrapping the silk around his neck and stuffing it in his bag. The offending orange scarf was on the armrest, acting like some type of cheap design to Naruto’s still plain new apartment. Throw it away, Naruto, don’t hang on to gross shit.” 

“It’s the first crochet-thing you made, and you gave it to me! Why wouldn’t I keep it?” Naruto shrugs, tossing his jacket on the sofa, kicking one of the boxes to the side before plopping on the cushions. He taps on the space beside him, inviting Sasuke, but the man was still looking around, somehow finding something to look at in the small empty space that Naruto was barely able to afford. 

“Did you wash it, at least?” 

Naruto trails his hands over the cloth, finger hooking over the messy hole near the end. It did clash horridly with his shiny-worn black sofa, and the cream white walls, but Naruto didn’t really apply his art of film making to his furniture. And neither did he ever find it in himself to throw it away; even keeping it on top of all his other clothes when packing, hence why it’s also the first piece of cloth to make its way outside the cardboard boxes. 

“Of course. It’s not as soft as it used to be, but, eh, it’s mostly for decor now. I don’t want it to get any more withered than it already is, y’know?” Naruto says, staring back when Sasuke turns to him, silent for a moment before nodding. 

“I never saw it in your old dorm, so… I don’t know, didn’t think I’d actually see that hideous thing again.”

“Hideous thing that _you_ made, Sas’. Some things don’t need to look pretty to hold value.” 

Sasuke snorts, his usual reply when hearing something disgustingly cheesy from _Naruto,_ before sitting an arm away beside the blond and sighing. Naruto twists on his side, lifting his leg and hooking it over his knee before leaning back, head hooked over the top of the sofa, turning to Sasuke with a light smile. 

He reaches out for Sasuke’s sleeve, the man surprisingly allowing him to thumb and pull on the cloth, when usually he’d pull away in complaint of his clothes wrinkling; but Naruto supposed the navy-blue cardigan wasn’t the type to wrinkle. It did seem to stretch, but he didn’t push it. “You made this, didn’t you? How long did it take? I’ve never seen it before.” 

“I did, yeah. It took me over a few months, being busy and all… especially now with the upcoming play. Next year.”

“Oh, cool. It looks good. If your acting-play-thing doesn’t work out, seems like you could make a job out of this crochet thing,” finding something wrong with his wording, especially with something he knew Sasuke was passionate of, Naruto adds hurriedly, “Not that I think your acting-play-thing wouldn’t work out, of course. Just saying you have a lot of options.” 

The man blinks, before rolling his eyes and scoffing. “But you don’t, so take yours seriously.” 

“Hey—” 

Sasuke doesn’t listen, slapping the offending hand away, and Naruto’s burn at the sight of the dark-haired man leaning forward, a light arch to his back as he smoothly peels off the dark cardigan, shrugging it off his limbs to reveal smooth arms. Naruto tries his best to not blush at the sight of Sasuke’s chest pushing and rolling out like that, his not so loose shirt hugging him fairly well. 

Turning to the ceiling instead, Naruto feigns a cough. “…I do take it seriously.” 

Sasuke hums a quiet _sure you do,_ leaning on the armrest, cardigan forgotten on his side. Their time is wasted like that, idle and languid conversing; Naruto forgetting what exactly he’d dragged Sasuke into his unkempt home for. 

**_Nineteen. May._ **

“Naruto?” The blond hears from his side, but the soft voice is barely anything against the ringing in his ears. He spends another moment of confusion and shock, quiet, unable to sputter like he usually did in such a state— Sasuke had _just left with someone,_ a man, looking happy and flirtatious and completely unlike what Naruto had ever seen from him ever. 

The man’s eyes had fluttered attractively, cocky smirk and languid movements as he was escorted out by the arm around his waist. It wasn’t easy to suppress the sour jealousy rising in the pit of his stomach, sending unpleasant tingles down to the tips of his fingers and his toes; urging him to _move_ even when he didn’t know what for. 

Naruto only stood there, baffled for a few more seconds before he shook his head, taking a sip of his drink and facing the girl that had initially captured his attention. 

She was cute, yeah, but the tameness of her hair was starting to put him off. 

—

“I saw you go out with someone,” Naruto blurts out, completely against his better judgement. Slapping a hand over his mouth, he feels his face warm, and he shakes his head in hopes to dismiss the question before Sasuke gets on his throat. 

They had just finished having lunch with their friends, and Naruto had insisted Sasuke visit him before he went home, to sober up a little from their originally tipsy state with some rest and some tea. It had been two hours from then, but Sasuke seemed to be too languid to move, sitting beside the blond with his feet propped up on Naruto’s wacky coffee table. Naruto had taken his poor laptop off the table before Sasuke smacked his feet on it, and decided he might as well get started with the end of his upcoming project, which was a simple summer ad that only needed a logo overlay somewhere in the video. It wasn’t the most fun thing to do when you had your somewhat-crush on your shoulder, and of course it wasn’t long before his focus trailed off somewhere else. 

Sasuke, stiffening the slightest, lifts his sights from where he had been focused on his phone, head on Naruto’s shoulder, surprisingly didn’t look like he wanted to strangle the blond for daringly to ask a personal question like that. “Yeah, I did. What about it?” 

Naruto swallows, focused on how Sasuke looked at him intensely, an eyebrow cocked up, likely expecting more stupid shit to spew from his mouth. “Nothing, just… uh,” Naruto paused, not knowing what exactly he was meaning to say. It didn’t help that Sasuke’s face was so close to his own, making it harder to want to look away and to look away; was he just jealous? Dumb? Curious? All three and maybe more? He was… uh, “Just surprised. Never really saw you go out with someone, even after you claimed liking to party. All you usually do is sulk in the corner and stuff.” 

Sasuke’s face pinches, eye twitching in annoyance. “I don’t sulk,” he says pointedly, “and that was an old friend of mine.” 

Naruto gulps as Sasuke takes another sip of his cooling tea, seemingly unbothered. “So you… did stuff with him?” 

The man pauses on his sips, and tiredly digs a palm into his forehead. “That’s none of your business, Naruto. They’re just someone I’m comfortable with, and getting tipsy had me more… active, alright?” And though he sounded a little defensive, Naruto supposed he couldn’t get up Sasuke’s ass for just talking to someone that indicated a little more than acquaintanceship, but he definitely was a little curious. 

“Yeah, okay. Sorry, forget about it,” Naruto rushes out, and he turns his focus back to his laptop, trying to find where he’d picked off from what he was editing. He detours, one of the video files making him perk up in interest, already feeling the awkward tension in the room begin to dissipate. He presses on the mostly-blue disrupted by his caramel skin thumbnail, the video popping up brightly enough for Sasuke to turn in curiosity. “I went surfing the other day— the waves were nearly double in size, so… It’s cooler. I looked cooler.”

“Sure.” Sasuke scoffs, shifting against his side just as Naruto hits play. 

**_Nineteen. Early July._ **

“You’re… holding an umbrella,” Sasuke stares at the piece of plastic in Naruto’s palm. “…Wow. It’s taken you this long to stop being an idiot.” 

“Getting sick was an experience. A bad one that I do not want to go through again,” Naruto grins, making space for Sasuke under the large, annoyingly bright orange cover. 

“It’s huge,” Sasuke comments as he steps beside Naruto. Never mind the umbrella dangling from his wrist. “Trauma is where your change begins, huh, Naruto?” They start making their way to the nearby bus stop, rain splatting lightly under their feet. 

“Don’t be mean.” The blond laughs, nudging Sasuke with his arm, the umbrella tilting enough for rain to hit them. “Oh, fuck, oops,” Naruto says, hurriedly tightening his grip; a little panicked, even when he knows there was little chance he’d get sick from that little exposure. He supposed. _Right?_ “Am I going to get sick from that?” 

Sasuke’s arm is then rubbing against his side, little jerks as the lithe shoulders shake in amusement. “You love the rain, don’t you? What does it matter?” 

“I just wanted to go surfing with you, Sas’.” Naruto pouts, willing himself to not over internalize the tiny bit of comfort Sasuke had found in him, _in public._ Sasuke would barely show him anything even after so long; and most moments were so short and so little Naruto felt like he was imagining it; and fuck, maybe he was. The thought of Sasuke just forcing himself to fake his comfort in Naruto’s presence were his insecurities speaking up, despite knowing Sasuke wasn’t the type to do so. His ongoing need for the man’s validation had led him to such a state of just wanting to do better, to show off, to _want._

“…Anyway, we need to go out again soon, and we are definitely going out soon,” Naruto holds out his hand, but he retracts before the rain hits him again. “Next week, or next next week, when the rain’s fully gone. We’re going to _surf,_ and you’re going to get your ass into the water.” 

“No, I don’t think I will. You can go surf yourself, and I’ll watch over Sakura and Ino as they get drunk on the shore.” 

“Really? Since when have you actually cared about them? You’re just going to get drunk yourself and use that as an excuse to go to my apartment.” 

Sasuke’s breath hitches, annoyance crawling over his features. “You drag my to your house, then force stale tea down my throat.” 

Naruto gasps in mock offense, “I buy that bitter shit for you, and only you! The least you could do is drink it; you don’t even protest when I bring you there, so why wouldn’t I?” 

“You are so…” Sasuke squints at him, and despite the mildly judgmental stare Naruto sort of wanted to kiss off his face, the blond blinks innocently, because ultimately, he knew he was right; as he he wasn’t feeling too lame right now, he knew Sasuke enjoyed being with him to some point, and it kept his ego afloat. “…Annoying.” 

—

“Oh, hi, Sasuke.” 

A man stood before them— the same man who had captured not only Sasuke’s, but his, for undoubtedly completely different reasons, the same man that had comfortably wrapped his arm around Sasuke’s waist and had him half-laugh just as Naruto did, in the sad excuse of a party Naruto had somewhat pulled Sasuke into. The man had fumbled his way into the bus stop, fearless of the light sprinkle of rain; holding no umbrella as he lowered his hood before raking a hand through damp hair. Under the little protection in the bus stop, the rain around outside, conversation was waiting to fill in the quiet of their surroundings. 

Looking at the man, Naruto could tell he was painfully attractive— but still Naruto hadn’t expected him to be Sasuke’s type; sandy blond hair that reached just below his ears, dark green eyes that Naruto could easily see how someone would be captivated by them. Hell, _he_ was checking this guy out. 

Sasuke, with the way he kept begging for Naruto to shut up, the blond had expected for someone more unlike himself (not to rub his own cock, but this dude looked like he liked the rain, and ultimately, people who liked the rain were idiots that prioritized fun over their own well-being, which was Naruto until a few weeks ago); quiet and straight to the point, which wasn’t him, and neither did this guy seem like it. 

“…And hi, Naruto,” the man said after a moment of blinking at Sasuke, a large smile on his face as he held a hand out to him right after tapping Sasuke on the shoulder. 

Naruto takes the hand in his, shaking it firmly. With their short distance apart, he could see how the man was a little shorter than him, maybe an inch taller than Sasuke— and it sort of barely replenished his steadily deteriorating pride. “Hi.” 

Sasuke stood by Naruto’s side, annoyed that Naruto had managed to trap them into this small area, if the fingers constantly pinching his back was anything to go by. That’s how far their talk went, Sasuke’s friend blinking happily before his phone saved the day and forced his attention elsewhere. 

The blond pulls on Sasuke’s arm, confused about his silence. He ignores the twinge of jealousy that he usually stored for anything Sasuke-related, clicking his tongue before leaning into Sasuke’s ear. “Isn’t he your friend? Introduce me.”

Sasuke turns to him hastily, and Naruto feels his nose brush against Sasuke’s cheek, the mild smell of sweet grapes wafting into his currently heightened senses. “No, why would I?” 

Before Naruto lets Sasuke’s lack of pride in him make him upset, he pulls at Sasuke’s sleeve, his voice hitching a little louder than a rushed whisper, “Clearly you’ve talked about me to him— he knows my name, Sas’, just introduce me.” 

Stepping back the tiniest bit, Sasuke shoves Naruto’s face away. “Introduce yourself, if you’re so confident.” 

“Why won’t you introduce me, he’s right—”

“Hey, Sasuke, I’ve got to go, someone’s picking me up near some coffee place here,” the man unknowingly cuts Naruto off, and the pair jerk their heads up to face him. The dark green eyes graze over the blond carefully, a smirk on his face that makes Naruto want to challenge him. “Sorry we haven’t met earlier, Naruto,” he says, side glancing at the blond as he smiled as leaned towards Sasuke, the dark-haired man not bothered to turn away before a kiss lands on his cheek. 

Holding in a gasp, Naruto chokes on his saliva, watching carefully as the man pulls away and leaves Sasuke to wipe the skin that lips had just connected with. “Sasuke here is very fussy, but I’m sure you already know that. He refused for us to meet, you remember that party—?” 

“Akihiko,” Sasuke says from his side, easily shutting the man up. 

Akihiko grins, a laugh bubbling from his lips. He turns to Naruto, a hand already outreached to grab for the sliding doors. “I heard you liked surfing? Invite me next time.” 

“Sure, Akihiko. I’ll ask Sasuke to relay the message,” Naruto returns the grin, grabbing the wrist that had reached out to pinch on his side. 

“Definitely,” Akihiko pulls the door to the side, winking at the two before stepping out. 

They wait for the man to be too far to be seen through the misty glass, and Naruto lets out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. “He’s… yeah, good taste, Sas’. Great taste.”

“He’s a friend.” 

Naruto scoffs, looking at the man with an eyebrow arched. “Mhm, yes, clearly he is.” 

“An idiot like you could only agree, of course,” Sasuke rolls his eyes, overlooking blush on his own cheeks, and Naruto seems to mirror him. “Can’t make any accurate observations of your own.” 

“Please, you can’t be an asshole just cos’ I’m right.”

“Who says you were ever right?” 

“I can tell— oh,” Naruto pauses, seeing their bus over Sasuke’s shoulder. _His_ bus, to be precise, but, “You’re going to my place, right?” 

“And what will I do there?” 

Naruto shrugs, sliding the door aside and shaking his umbrella open. He holds it open, walking under the umbrella, waiting for Sasuke to step in to line with him. “I dunno. What we usually do, drink tea and eat food. Maybe play some games.” 

“Stir fry. I want stir fry, and you’re paying for embarrassing me like that.” Sasuke strides beside the blond, just as the bus stops a few meters from them; Naruto’s last second planning biting him back in the ass. 

“Embarrassing? What— right, of course, _your highness._ I’ll treat you this once.” 

**_—_ **

“Happy birthday!” Naruto wraps his arms around Sasuke’s shoulders, messing the dark hair as much as he could with one hand. They nearly fall over, Naruto leaning over him with his suffocating presence; difficult to stabilize themselves on the sand, but Sasuke manages to step back enough to balance his and Naruto’s nearly deadweight. 

“Ugh, it’s not my birthday— you really think I’d let you drag me to the beach on my birthday? Get your grimy hands off me,” Sasuke scowls, struggling against Naruto’s grip as he pulled on the blond hair, trying to pull on the back of Naruto’s skin-tight rash guard, the blond already ready to just jump into the water like some dog. 

“It’s so near, though! It’s like, next week!” Sasuke doesn’t get to berate him, face suddenly muffled into Naruto’s shoulder as he’s pressed into a tighter embrace. “You’re so old, I can’t believe it.” 

The blond pulls back, the pleasant softness of waves crashing against the beach not too far away; falling over them in a pleasant coat of serenity as he tugs on Sasuke’s ear with a face splitting smile, rubbing the lobe between his thumb and index finger, the rest of his fingers pressing against the side of Sasuke’s neck; Naruto trying not to go haywire at the way Sasuke twitches at the contact. They’re terribly close, mere inches from each other; Naruto finding himself gravitating towards Sasuke’s personal space more and more. His other hand is on Sasuke’s arm, gripping it with lose strength, daring Sasuke to pull away. 

Much to Naruto’s disappointment, Sasuke does pull away eventually, slapping Naruto’s hand from his ear. “You’re so annoying. Even Akihiko hesitated to pull through this beach-bullshit.”

Naruto hums, “Whatever you say. Not like he invited me first, y’know? Not like you just trudged after us gentlemen because you’re lonely.” 

“Me, lonely? With an idiot like you as a friend? Please. I’d be lucky to ever find myself lonely.” 

Cocking an eyebrow, Naruto can’t help but let his cockiness seep into his voice. “Then why are you here, Sas’?” 

The man scoffs, his voice no less confident than Naruto’s. A little annoyed, if so, more than the annoyed Naruto was comfortable with. “If you don’t want me here, just say so. You seem to always have troubles with that.” 

“What— where is that coming from—” Naruto shakes his head. “You must be the protective type, huh?” 

“Please. After all these years why would I ever suddenly feel the need to protect you?” The man says, voice in a slight rush and a little averting; and even though Naruto knew Sasuke didn’t really mean most of his mean words— what he just said not bad as the others, it still sent a painful prick into his heart, Sasuke’s tone defensively venomous. 

Masking his shock and hurt with an awkward chuckle, he takes a step back and brushes the short bangs against his forehead. “Asshole,” he sighs, defeated, because Naruto can’t find it himself to retaliate with the same level of _mean_ Sasuke had just hit him with. It hurt more than it should’ve— more than how it usually felt, especially when Naruto was spiraling deeper into the grasps of his more than platonic emotion; his mind desperately trying to catch up as it poorly climbed the walls of denial. “No need to be defensive now. I was just… saying, I guess. Come on now, don’t be like that.” 

Sasuke sighs, but he doesn’t say sorry like Naruto wants him to. Naruto doesn’t push it though, knowing Sasuke would eventually come around to apologize; not in a public space, when he gets dragged to Naruto’s small apartment for stale tea and underripe fruit and a conversation that goes roundabout until Sasuke eventually softens enough to confront the assholeness he had forced Naruto to endure. That type of thing doesn’t happen too often, thankfully— at least not to the highest degree, just a bad once or twice in their three-year friendship, that one time Sasuke’s tone was too, too harsh or when Naruto had accidentally sabotaged Sasuke’s final project. 

It does, however, put a sour mood between them, that by default gives Naruto most of the responsibility of lightening the atmosphere for others other than themselves. While most their quarrels of the past were about _Naruto’s_ over attention to Dorito chips and _Naruto_ being too pushy or inconsiderate about Sasuke’s time or talking too much shit about Sasuke that he truly didn’t mean; immature things and insecurities coming into play into their over-competitiveness, they’ve grown to another type of mutual and emotional maturity, that’s currently urging them— or in Naruto’s part, _him—_ to get closer in other ways that he still didn’t really know what, to find meaning in the small looks Sasuke would give him— or the more than just friendly flirtatious exchanges (though rare) he knew Sasuke wasn’t the type to joke around with. 

It didn’t help that everyone else thought the same, that there was something going on that they tiredly stopped pointing out eventually— _pseudo-boyfriend_ or something— which seemed too far from what he wanted while simultaneously it being a dreadfully intriguing idea. Naruto, who couldn’t help but cling into this nearly toxic rivalry, was now trying to translate it into something more… wholesome, per se, but the process of doing it meant he’d have to be emotionally vulnerable, which was oddly difficult— for someone confident in his capability to communicate— more so with how Sasuke had a brick wall for a limbic system. 

“Let’s just start setting up.” Sasuke lifts his and Naruto’s bag, slinging one over his shoulders while carrying the other in his arms. He stares at the blond expectantly, or at the tan hands, really, just waiting for Naruto to lead their way somewhere, to maybe give his own sigh and a laugh that would immediately lighten the mood. 

_Nothing;_ Naruto does _nothing,_ because now Naruto likes to face his and everyone else’s emotional fears with words rather than careless dismissal. He was a terrifying force, one that was at the same time harmless and infinitely tiring to handle— it was difficult, keeping up. 

Naruto tucks the two boards under his arms: one recently decorated with an obnoxiously orange fox, the board tamed the slightest with black, the other one a plain navy-blue, a purple gradient at the tips, a color Sasuke uselessly denied as his favorite color; and also the board Naruto had bought for Sasuke in hopes to surf with him— which was ultimately left unused (maybe once, on a day full of hardy waves, until Naruto decided the color didn’t suit him as much as orange did— looking good on the water was part of the experience; even when what he normally wore outside of the water was weird and simply an eye-strain. Not everything translated well from his film-making knowledge, because in the end— comfort over anything else!).

Trudging his way through the sand, Naruto brings them closer to the shore before dumping the surfboards on the ground. Sasuke takes a seat on his half-his surfboard, bags on his lap. 

“When’s Akihiko coming?” 

Sliding his phone out of his pocket, Sasuke peeps at the recent text Akihiko had sent, seemingly uncaring of how Naruto peers down at him, heavy and slightly judgmental. “He’s just… on his way,” he mutters, before Sasuke dares to look up, trying not to falter at the intensity of Naruto’s curiously silent gaze. 

—

“What’s up with you and Sas’?” 

Paddling himself a little further in the water, Naruto pushes himself upright before facing the _just-as_ attractive man on his left. They were a fair distance from the shore, and a distance far enough not for the waves to come crashing on them, passed the white water when they did— a distance definitely far enough for Sasuke’s abnormal ability to separate different sounds from other sounds muffled enough for him to not pick out anything coherent. 

“You call him Sas’?” Which honestly was a dumb thing to ask, but it had taken a while for Sasuke to get used to 

Akihiko laughs in light disbelief, slapping Naruto’s back before he pulls him close by the neck, shifting his balance against the board. “He asks me to,” Akihiko says in a voice that confused Naruto if it really meant what he thought it meant, but Akihiko brushes over it with a smirk and as though the blond hadn’t tried to steer the conversation that way, he continues, “But for real, what’s up with you and Sas’?” 

Somewhat sourly, Naruto mutters, “With the way you’re with him, I’m pretty sure you know we’re just friends.” Uncurling himself from the sandy blond’s grip, he sits up, looking away from Akihiko and to the surferless waves. He fights the urge to turn behind him, to see what Sasuke thought of this interaction— it is what the man came along for, after all. “How did you meet him anyway?” 

“I was surprised when Sasuke told me you didn’t know me. S’ like he’s kept me from you.” 

“Oh, he certainly has,” Naruto chuckles, “I didn’t know you existed till you dragged him out of that party.” 

“Well, it’s nothing too complicated really.” Akihiko shrugs, stretching his arms behind his head. “We got together a few times last year— five month vacation, apparently, and hit it off till he just dropped it.” He nudges Naruto on his side, “No worries, Naru’, he likes you better than he likes me.” 

It’s no question to Naruto’s ego that he _had_ to be one of the closest people to Sasuke, consequently being someone Sasuke also _had_ to like better than most. 

“Of course,” Naruto scoffs. “We’ve only been friends for three-ish years but…” Naruto waves his hand through the water, “…What the fuck are we doing? We can talk about this later.”

“You’re right.” Akihiko leans forward to press his chest against his board, paddling himself forward, voice with hints of amusement. “I’ll take the next wave then, loverboy.” 

—

Much to Naruto’s surprise, the exhilaration he thought would be damped by his and Sasuke’s earlier interaction wasn’t damped at all, adrenaline numbing his… _anger,_ and the usual impatience he had when shit like this happened between them— which again wasn’t often; not often enough for him to master the ways of mediating things between them. 

The wave right after Akihiko’s was much more appealing, long lasting and just a barely larger wave that gave him time to show off just how much he’d learned in the little time since he’d started this new hobby of surfing. After that disaster surfing he’d force Sasuke to watch that weak beach day, he could tell with how the fins of his board cut sharply through the water, much unlike how he’d last a sad twenty seconds before falling into the not so salty ocean— how his little nerdy self could see that besides the possibility of getting sick, surfing during the rain messed up the waves too. 

Pushing himself up backwards, he flattens a foot at the back of the board, his other near the middle; and moving across this wave like it didn’t dangerously form around him, he tilts the board upwards when finding an opening— skimming over the shoulder of the wave, hips and feet easily following as he lets go of the wave for the barest of seconds, spinning in mid air before gravity pulls him back onto position— and gliding smoothly until his balance is unstable enough that it throws him into the water, hitting him with a little breathlessness he didn’t know had been forming. 

—

After a few silent surfs, the waves start to tame and he lets himself fall, finding his board and paddles himself carefully to shore, leaving Akihiko alone in the water. Unlike Sasuke, the grudge-holding bastard, he plops beside the overly dry, yet sun-screen wet body happily, and Naruto’s chippy mood is enough to temporarily lighten the mood.

—They’ve come to the beach, the one and only time Sasuke came willingly, and he wasn’t going to waste it just watching the man rot on the sand. 

“You going to let me teach you, Sas’? It’s why we’re here,” he says as they watch Akihiko take on the water; the man not easy to miss with how… well, _hot,_ he looked, and the gaggle of giggling girls nearby. He was good, Naruto wanted to say, but he’d save that for later as his goodbye message before he’d drag Sasuke to his apartment for some talk. 

“…Okay, let’s surf.” Which was a surprise to Naruto, because he was already ready to deal with another sad rejection— but it was a little nice to know that Sasuke would indulge in his requests as a non-verbal, gentle beginning before he decided to say sorry. Words were difficult! And Naruto wanted to respect that as much as he could. 

“O-Oh.” Naruto grins, immediately rising to his feet. He reluctantly holds out a hand for Sasuke to take. “I really want you to use your board, cos’ I know you’re good at everything, but we can also rent a 9-footer board if you want to surf together— and we could still technically surf the same wave on different boards. I think.” 

“Does it matter?” Looking at Naruto’s hand, Sasuke takes it hesitantly, then is harshly pulled to stand. It’s a little dizzying, but he manages, and now he’s eye to eye at Naruto waiting for him to reply. “I’ll do it on my own.” Sasuke smirks, and It helps with how Naruto was casually trying to change the mood— they both knew something was slowly stirring between them, Naruto’s challenge inducing idiotic face pulling the strings the way Sasuke hated it, the same way he also needed it. Sucking it up, Sasuke cocks an eyebrow at Naruto, “I’m good at everything, aren’t I? What are we doing?” 

Naruto scoffs, and he pulls his and Sasuke’s board to stand beside him. “Then why haven’t you tried surfing all this time? I’m pretty sure you’re just scared to get your ass beat.” 

“Just letting you have something to be good at. You’d be crushed the moment you figured out I was in fact better than you.” 

Cooing, Naruto leans over Sasuke with an idiotically pouty face. “Is that so, Mr. I-wear-hoodies to-the-beach? Hopefully you’re not all bark and no bite.”

Rolling his eyes, Sasuke trails a hand over ‘his board’, appreciating the choice of color from the boisterous idiot. “My board, huh?” 

A hint of flush blooming across Naruto’s cheek, he rubs under his nose in slight embarrassment. Buying someone a surfboard (even thrifted), Naruto supposed, was a little stretch, given how he barely clung from financial ruin and was a film-maker with a camera that was falling apart; but seeing that board while getting his customized for free just because his friend wanted practice, there was no question. 

“Yes, with purple, because everyone knows just how much you like purple.” 

“I don’t like purple,” Sasuke insisted, eyes certainly betraying him with how they looked intently at the pretty color. 

“It’s the only other color you tolerate, so what would one think?” 

“I tolerate orange very much, with how you wear the hideous color all day everyday.” 

Naruto huffs, “Maybe you just like it yourself.” 

—

Okay— it had been a while since Naruto had seen Sasuke’s shirtless— and as lame as insisting Sasuke practice on the sand first after waxing his boards, it all paid well, seeing Sasuke’s back flex nicely— which Naruto questioned because the only times he’d seen Sasuke work out was back at high school, not even anything intense— as Sasuke pushed himself into a standing position, the steep dip of his spine creating pretty shadows before Naruto had to look away because the man was now waiting for him with an eyebrow arched impatiently.

“Do you know what you’re teaching?” Sasuke asks, not missing Naruto’s unusual stuttering and stumbling. Besides seeing Sasuke mostly naked like this, Naruto was actually getting a little nervous, not exactly with his teaching ability, but… The chances, yes— the chances. 

Rubbing his cheek, Naruto unreassuringly says, “A little? Just relaying what I was taught, heh… You know what? Let’s actually just get in the water— the waves aren’t that huge, you won’t die. I think. Do you know how to swim?”

Sasuke rolls his eyes. “Yes, I know how to swim, Naruto. Jesus.” 

Naruto suddenly falters anyway. Surfing, he realizes, was actually a little dangerous; remembering the story his trainer told him about breaking a leg when falling off his board, and— “Actually, let’s not. You should get a trainer to teach you.” 

“Seriously?” 

“Yes,” Naruto rushes, leaning down to lift the board. “Let’s get a soft board next time, if you really want to surf.” 

“No,” Sasuke cuts him off, “I’m going to do it, with this board you got me— push up quickly, keep close to the back of the board, and the basic keep balance. Doesn’t seem too hard.” Sasuke pulls the board from Naruto’s grip, the blond letting go weakly. 

“But—”

“You taught me the basics, Naruto. All that matters is putting it to practice. Don’t get nervous for me.” 

“Wow, uh, okay. Yeah, but… We’re going to surf the same wave.”

“Isn’t that dangerous?” 

“Not really, if I surf behind you, and the waves are small— wait, no, we really shouldn’t—”

Not bothering to spend another second listening to Naruto’s useless rambling, feeling weirdly motivated to prove himself to Naruto, Sasuke walks him and his board closer to the shore, Naruto trailing after him with his own board. 

“Sas’, one last thing, I know you’re a cocky bastard that’s hilariously full of himself but water will literally bend to your every will, so you have to be care—”

“Careful, yes, Naruto. Now tell me how to catch a wave,” Sasuke says nonchalantly, dumping his board onto the water, dragging it further from the sand before pulling himself over the board. He starts paddling, though lightly, letting Naruto catch up to him, wordlessly enjoying the cool water more than he thought it would. 

Groaning, Naruto tries to tug at the end of Sasuke’s board, not wanting him to paddle too far right away. But his strength is hard to balance, unable to stop Sasuke and at the same time try to propel himself further, even more difficult with how Sasuke was splashing tons of water into his face. “You’re right,” Naruto gasps, blinking the salt water off of his lashes and spitting out the briny liquid in his mouth, “I haven’t even told you how to catch a wave, oh Jesus, Sas’ don’t drown, please. I wouldn’t be able to live the same way if you did.” 

Thankfully, Sasuke does stop, bluffing away the little wobble in his hips as he pushes himself up to sit, waiting for Naruto to park by his side. 

“You’ll see a bump start to form in the horizon, but you don’t try to surf that, it’s too small,” Naruto exhales as he pauses by Sasuke, immediately getting to the point in fear of Sasuke just propelling himself forward, “So if you’re where the bumps form— where we are, sort of— get a little further from that, because you won’t be able to catch that— oh, look,” Naruto points at a woman nearby to their right; who turns her board around before paddling herself forcefully with the wave, “Turn your board once you see that height, for these waves. And keep your chest and head low while you paddle down the wave, alright? Just like she did, oh now she’s up— you need uh… gravity, to help you down that wave before you get to stand, and you know your weight helps with that, nerd.

“You’ll feel it when the speed picks up, so by then you can stop paddling to stand. From there it’s how good and fast you are at balancing,” they watch the woman switch her footing, tilting herself higher up the wave, pushing down a little to pick up speed for her to surf higher again. “Don’t do that stuff yet— it’s all about timing and good prediction. And definitely confidence, which I’m sure I need to remind myself more than I have to remind you. You can apply all that next time.”

There’s a considerable amount of silence before Sasuke mutters his smooth reply, “…Seems easy enough. I can’t believe you missed so much in teaching me. You’re bad at this.”

“I’m usually good at leading and teaching! It’s being part of this film make— okay, fine, I was excited! I didn’t know what to say when it came to it, and now I’m nervous for you. This water is pretty deep too, what if you stop swimming suddenly because you get tired?!” 

“Then you’ll save me. Isn’t that why you’re still here?” 

Naruto cries, clutching on Sasuke’s shoulders despite an awkward angle. “The responsibility really is on me, isn’t it? You’re making it sound like you’ll really die!” 

Slapping the hands off of his shoulders, Sasuke gives a half-hearted chuckle, amused but at the same time a little worried for Naruto’s worry for him. The man was too infectious for his own good. “You brought me to this point, and there’s no way out but forward.” 

Looking at other surfers, Sasuke was even more convinced that surfing wasn’t all that difficult as Naruto suddenly made it out to be. The waves were about half a meter smaller now, all ranging from three feet to one meter, if Sasuke trusted himself to guess right— and even some children were surfing with their parents, slow and steady as they skimmed across the moving waters. 

“We could always paddle back.” 

Sasuke narrows his eyes, clutching on the sides of his board as the beginnings of a wave push under them. Balancing with only your hips even sitting down was a little difficult. “…Why are you so worried all of the sudden?” 

“Sas’ these waves are nearly double— even triple our height, and we’re pretty tall. Come on.” 

“Stop exaggerating; they’re not that high. Even kids are surfing.” 

“With parental guidance! It’s okay for them!” 

“You’ll be my guidance. It’s okay,” Sasuke snickers, “I can do this. If I fall off the wave, just find me.” 

“That is so fucking ominous, you asshole—”

Biting his lips to hold onto a groan, Sasuke pinches on the bridge of his nose, massaging the tension between his eyes. “Just. Shut. The. Fuck. Up. I’m going to surf now. You are not going to get me into this piss-stained water without fulfilling what I actually agreed to in the first place.” 

Taking a deep breath, Naruto gives Sasuke this look of worry that is only retaliated with a careless roll of dark eyes. “Okay, fine,” Naruto tries to relax, rubbing his fingers against his knees to feel his pruning skin, fumbling on the ends of his shorts as a show of reluctance. “Sasuke Uchiha, the genius asshole, will be able to surf and not break a leg or die if ever he falls off his board.” 

“Dumbass,” Sasuke says, before he’s splashing water into Naruto’s face; Naruto trying to find some assurance in Sasuke’s strong strokes. Sighing, he paddles right after. 

—

…Five seconds. 

Five seconds of complete anticlimactic moments strung together and packaged behind the seemingly incredibly dangerous sport that was surfing. 

It was also how long Sasuke had stood on the board, before ultimately falling into the water and throwing Naruto into some type of half-frenzy, with the way the man had tumbled forward. 

Letting himself be pushed forward by the wave, Naruto hurriedly scrambles his way above the water, but stops and calms down some more when Sasuke resurfaces, wet hair sticking to his forehead as he looks for the dark board; easy to spot against the white water. 

Hand connecting with the tough plastic, Sasuke pulls himself over the it, immediately paddling his way back to where the waves were, combing the hair back that usually obstructed his eyes, throwing an unreadable look at the largely excited-nervous blond. 

“…Are you… okay?” 

Wet hair falling over his face as quick as it was stuck back, Sasuke looked up at the blond, eyes brighter than they were less than a minute ago. Maybe he had underestimated the fun of this surfing shit, and maybe getting a little wet outside of showers was okay. That, and Naruto’s sudden extreme over exaggeration of the dangers even after nearly a year or more of trying to convince Sasuke to join him. 

“Yes, I’m okay,” Sasuke paddles ahead, though a little slower than earlier; more on trying not to look eager to get on another wave than being tired. Waves powering underneath them, he turns to Naruto with his chest still pressed close to his board, he smirks, flagrant and entirely cocksure with his next words— “You’re just afraid of me being better.” 

Offended, Naruto gasps as he stares incredulously at his dark-haired friend. “I was worried, you asshole!” 

Sasuke rolls his eyes, eyes following how Naruto’s hands flail around weirdly. “You are so… unpredictable,” he mutters. “It’s annoying. You call me arrogant and a genius but when it comes to it, you don’t trust me.” 

“I don’t mean it that way,” Naruto sighs, the corners of his lips twitching and Sasuke knew it wasn’t long until Naruto broke into a full on smile; ready to tease him about not trying surfing earlier; already forgetting about how embarrassingly worried _he’d_ been. “I’m just… good at bluffing.” 

“You aren’t good at bluffing, idiot.” Sasuke snorts, “Like I said. Just good at being unpredictable, which honestly isn’t a good thing most of the time.” 

“But it looked like you had fun… you’d do it again?” 

Looking away from Naruto, Sasuke stares over at the waves, the walls of water rolling over loudly before dissipating into thick bubbles of white. It’s a _yes_ from him, but like always, he wasn’t going to give the satisfaction of Naruto hearing it. Not yet, at least, because neither of them needed any more ego boosting. Instead, he starts pushing away, thinking of how to ride the wave for as long as it stood instead of just falling immediately; yelling out for Naruto to find the friend they had nearly forgotten. 

—

“I can’t believe this.” Was the first thing Akihiko had cried when he had pulled close to Naruto as they watched Sasuke try to surf (or actually surf, at that point, because the man was already lasting longer every other time he managed to stand on the board). Naruto refused to leave the water, replying to Sasuke’s glares with a wave and smile. It was a little funny to see Sasuke get invested pretty quick, and Naruto no longer felt like they needed to address Sasuke’s little outburst earlier. 

…Maybe.

The current atmosphere was simply too good to give up. 

“Can’t believe what?” 

“You guys really left me to third-wheel, is what I can’t believe.” 

Though unsure of whether or not Akihiko was looking at him, Naruto rolls his eyes, instead focusing on the Sasuke that was currently choosing for another wave to ride. “Yeah, right. If anything, I’m the one third-wheeling here.” 

“Are you serious?” 

“I feel like I’ve been asked that plenty of times today, but not directly.” 

Akihiko chuckles, slapping a hand on Naruto’s thigh, weakened in the water. “No one can tell whether you’re fucking serious, Naru’, you gotta work on that. Sometimes I feel like poking your eyes out for Sasuke.” 

“Now why would he do that?” Naruto snorts, amused. “I know my eyes are pretty, but if he wants them so bad he’s gonna have to stick to looking at them, which he does pretty often, the pigheaded bastard. And I know you’ve only called me that nickname a few times, but it’s ugly as fuck.” Naruto still didn’t bother to look at him, fixated on how Sasuke’s lean stomach created shadows as he bent forward to maneuver the board. 

“You are so dumb, Naruto. I can’t believe it!” 

“Again, you’ve said that again!” Naruto laughs, loud enough for Sasuke to suddenly snap his attention to him. Naruto gives a wide wave again, one that another would feel the secondhand embarrassment from. 

“…Well, what do you think Sasuke’s type is?” 

“Uh,” Naruto mumbles as he itches the back of his ear. “That was fucking random. But I think his type would be guys like you?” 

“Really? He must like your blond hair too then,” Akihiko says, smiling as Naruto turns to look at him. 

Naruto tries to take in Akihiko’s looks, but the only thing he could pick up that was similar enough to him was the surfer body and the blond hair, that was still a few shades from his. Naruto can only hope that Sasuke doesn’t pick up whatever he’s about to say, however he’s about to sound. 

It’s a painful truth, even more painful to say, and even Naruto’s heart recently began believing otherwise, he says, “He doesn’t like me.” And unable to help it anyway, he adds, “I think. That’s none of your business, though. Shut up before you make me panic.” 

Blinking, Akihiko looks like he’s trying to evaluate the degree of stupidity in Naruto’s words, before choking out a pathetic type of laugh, which somehow emulated how Naruto felt at the moment too. “What?” 

“You just went ahead and assumed what I meant, wow.” 

“What else would it mean—” Naruto groans, “You’re an asshole too, aren’t you?” 

“I’m just better at trusting my instincts.” 

“You’re as cryptic as Sasuke, Jesus,” Naruto sighs. “Most of the time— _sometimes,_ I don’t understand what message he’s trying to convey, and because of that gets all edgy and prickly when it happens. It always ends with him just saying nevermind and saying _‘my bad’,_ which is as close as it gets to the sorry he thinks is another, higher level type of apology.”

It takes a moment for Akihiko to respond, the dead air between them filled with crashing waves and arduous thoughts only Naruto seemed to be thinking. “I don’t understand what type of overly complex relationship you built between you guys,” Akihiko finally laughs. “It’s just amusing to an outsider like me, so I’ve got no first hand advice, but if you really want to stop entertaining and sometimes annoying the people around you, maybe you should stick to your monkey brain and stop thinking too hard.” 

Scoffing, Naruto watches Sasuke push off his board, not bothered enough to digest the same reconstructed words. “…You’re mean,” he mutters, connecting with Sasuke’s eyes for a moment before the entirety of the pale body is submerged. 

—

“Sorry about earlier.” 

Their anger— _annoyance—_ for each other had already dissipated long ago, but Naruto was still glad for Sasuke to initiate this apology, contrary to how he’d usually wait for them to beat around the bush until Sasuke sucked it up, as Naruto wasn’t one to take things to heart. 

Naruto smiles. “Me too.” 

Breathing out a frustrated sigh, Sasuke pokes Naruto on the shoulder. “Stop that, idiot. Stop forgiving me so easily.” 

“Nope.” 

“…”

Naruto’s smile widens, loving how it was easy to pin down Sasuke with just emotion. Or exasperate him, in which the two were often intertwined. “Happy birthday, Sas’.” 

“It isn’t my birthday.” 

“It’s this month, though,” Naruto smiles, hand reaching out to play with Sasuke’s earlobe. “So, happy birthday!” 

“…You’re such a weirdo.” 

“Your best-friend-forever is a weirdo. All for you to handle!” 

“Can’t believe I’m not tired of you yet.” 

Naruto laughs, “Not when you just had a lot of fun today.” 

“Who said I had fun?” 

“But I know you did,” Naruto says as his laughter slows, giving one of those open and gentle smiles that seemed unconsciously given as it was made. Looking down again, Sasuke avoids his gaze, Naruto’s hand dropping from where it had been stroking the skin behind his ear. 

“It’s okay, for real. I like forgiving you too easily.” 

“…You’re so annoying.” 

“I’ve been told.” 

“…Akihiko is my type, as you’ve heard.” 

“O-Oh, yeah, I know,” Naruto stumbles as he backs away from Sasuke’s personal space. He chuckles, somehow feeling like there was some type of plot going against him, throwing him into random bursts of emotion and energy that had him more confused and struggling than it had him thinking properly. “S’ why you like him, right?” 

“Yeah, duh. That’s what a type is.” Sasuke rolls his eyes, as if what he’d just brought up was normal and expected. 

Scrambling for his guts to pick up the pieces of his heart that Naruto didn’t notice had broken, he chuckles awkwardly. He supposed he should thank Sasuke for the clarification before he fell deeper into the ugly shambles of falling-for-Sasuke. 

“…Sas’,” He starts anyway, unable to help himself from talking. “You’re making me nervous. Spit it out.” 

But Sasuke doesn’t do anything to ease Naruto’s steadily increasing panic, just looking at the blond with this unreadable look, the same look that always came when Sasuke was evaluating something— judging, making a mental list of things that Naruto was fearful to know of its contents— an outward show, apparently, of him trying to be unbiased. But this unbiased method Sasuke had was still… _insecurity_ inducing. And it certainly was lasting longer than it usually did; neither was there any proper context Naruto could seem to pick it up from. 

“Okay, I’m sorry, Sas’, I won’t forgive you easily next time— maybe I won’t forgive you, even, jeez. We can talk about it right now, if you like being tortured with, uh, deep talk. Even though I sorta hate that shit, I was seriously going to let it go today because you were really… Stop looking at me like that, asshole— I fucking hate when you do this shit, makes me want to—”

And if there was something Naruto expected at the moment, it was Sasuke sighing excessively loud, maybe even pulling on his ear to shut him up, or another extensive, verbal list of meaningless insults that Naruto would find more endearing than he would find offensive; going as far as to say he’d consider it amusing. 

Those were the top three highly possible outcomes of course, but what he’d definitely not expected, was Sasuke pulling them into the type of corny situation he accused of Naruto liking too much, the type of delusional where you’d expect life to be movie magic; kissing him lightly on the lips as means of silencing someone— _silencing Naruto—_ subjecting them to the same corny-movie-magic situation, gentle hands gripping the sides of his face with the warmth that Naruto didn’t feel frequently enough for him to desire until now. 

It was… 

It felt accidental _,_ perhaps impulsive, but it was positively sequential to where they led themselves to— yet it didn’t feel like a conclusion; in fact, it was nonetheless confusing, in many ways perplexing, as Naruto hadn’t really expected any type of reciprocation from Sasuke, still struggling to find the nuances in Sasuke’s personality and contradicting actions even when the confirmation was right there, in front of him, _on his lips._

But it wasn’t the right time to think, not when Sasuke’s lips on his, so close Naruto could smell the salt in his hair, his palms rough in some areas of his skin where the sand hadn’t fallen off— all irresistible. 

Awkwardly, Sasuke had to pull away, and Naruto didn’t dare blink as those dark irises came to light again, the experience more breathtaking than he thought a simple kiss should’ve been; how most his previous ones were easily forgotten compared to this; to the sudden realization that his feelings were definitely deeper than he thought they were.

Sasuke’s cheeks brighten in their moment of quiet, eyes widening in silent mortification before his hands start to retract, the weight of the situation dawning over them— that they had just taken their relationship into unknown grounds, into a plane of physical frailty that wasn’t created by punching each other to the ground or dropping in tiredness of their intense rivalry. 

“F-Fuck,” Sasuke breathes, looking ready to run away, but Naruto doesn’t let him think too far, too much, hands coiling around the pale wrists still close to his face, leaning in and capturing Sasuke’s soft lips with his own, pressing fervently and harder than Sasuke did earlier. Naruto's eyes shut this time, flicking his tongue against the pressed close muscle, tilting his head to ease the position so as to not crush their noses. 

Relaxing, Sasuke’s arms grow heavy and limp in Naruto’s grip, lips parting as Naruto’s warmth finally enters him properly, embracing him with this passion and this suffocating thrill— that one wouldn’t be able to run away from; along with large warm hands trailing up his arm to grasp at Sasuke’s nape, pushing and pulling untiringly, his other hand then crawling down his lower back before pressing them close together. Sasuke’s hands are trapped between their chests, balled into fists with nothing to do, but wanting to do something, pathetically besotted with the feeling of Naruto close to him unlike ever before. 

Naruto doesn’t let Sasuke breathe too much, only allowing desperate little swallows of air in the moments they’d split up— before changing the angle that would stir them on more than they’d been in the last second.

As intoxicating as it was, one of them had to have a clear mind, to pause this electrifying moment to replace with one that fit them better— or Sasuke better, nudging his head to the side in hopes to… explain, to clarify things that might need clarifying, not to clutch at Naruto’s shirt as arbitrary nips and kisses are bruised against the salty skin of his neck. 

“Naruto,” he manages to say, as the blond started licking at his jawline, fingers tickling his ears the way it always sent tingles down his spine. 

Naruto pauses, but he doesn’t pull away to show his face, completely tucked in the warm space under Sasuke’s neck. Naruto huffs against his skin, dampening it, the entirety of his body warming Sasuke into near discomfort. 

“Yes,” Naruto gulps, nervous.

“I…” Sasuke trails off, drawing in air, somewhat unable to think coherently. 

“I’m sorry,” Naruto mumbles quickly, eyes closed like Sasuke would be able to see him. Sasuke’s pulse is loud against his ears, beating erratically. “I think I like you. Might love you, even. I don’t know— I just… Think about you, a lot, I guess.” 

“You don’t act that way.” 

Naruto laughs, a little sad-sounding. “But I do… What about you? What was that kiss for? Is it another method to try to hurt me or something?” 

Sasuke tugs on the golden hair, urging Naruto to look at him. At the sight of cerulean-clear eyes, Sasuke forgets what exactly he wanted to talk about with Naruto, just completely out of breath because he’d never seen those eyes that close to him before. 

“I don’t know,” he murmurs, merging their lips once more. 

**_Twenty. Early November._ **

“We need to make a film together. A musical, a movie— something like that.” 

“No,” Sasuke says flatly, trying to pull his fingers away from Naruto’s inspecting ones. The blond never seemed to let go of him whenever they were in each other’s sights. 

“Oh, come on! It’s bound to happen someday! We can make it now!” 

“Don’t you just make ads? I don’t want to be in an ad.” 

“…Asshole, you know I just got an internship in one of those film companies. I’m dragging you with me.” 

“Yeah, no thanks.” Sasuke pulls his fingers away from Naruto’s warm grip, shoving them into his less warm pockets. 

Naruto rolls his eyes, unfaltering. Someday— they both felt, of course, that Sasuke would eventually be led to Naruto again. 

—

They’d tried surfing on the same board a few times. Most of it would end in ten seconds, the two of them constantly trying to take control, and eventually they’d decided that renting the longboard was a waste. 

It wasn’t long before it got too cold to surf, neither of them wanting to risk getting sick. 

**_Twenty. June._ **

The fear of his rain was long gone, but still Naruto wasn’t able to drag Sasuke out from under that umbrella. They’d spend some time together when the sky had cleared though, and apparently Sasuke agreed that the smell wasn’t all that bad. 

The label between them was still somewhat lost, confusing, the word 'boyfriend' still confusing as it was utterly perfect, but Naruto couldn't ask for more. 


End file.
